Recently I made a strange discovery when it comes to my own listening habits. See, I am more then a person who likes music, I am a music collector and in some aspects a bit of a completest. Yes, I am that guy, the one that buys the greatest hits album even though I already own every song on it. I simply have to have it. So, to make a long story short, I have put together a very extensive collection of music on my iTunes.
Now for the longest time I have been frustrated by my listening habits. Here I have this giant library of fantastic music to draw from, yet each and every day when I turn on some music, my selection comes from a very small list of my own greatest hits. It is almost as if the more music I acquire, the less I actually listen to.
However, this has bothered me, so I have put a great deal of thought into it. Here is what I came up with...
Day in, day out, I have been listening to my "comfort music." Music that I don't need to think about, music that I know and can just turn on and run with. The problem is that despite the fact that I love so much different music, it takes a lot for something to fall into that level of "comfort music." You need to listen to it enough to really know the details of it. Listen to the point that you know it like the back of your hand.
It should come as no surprise that my listening habits translate into my playing- art is usually a reflection of its creator. Not only have I come to a point in my listening where I rely on "comfort music", I also find myself turning to "comfort playing."
It is logical when you think about it. We all play guitar because we love the instrument. The feeling of bringing that wood and wire to life in our hands is invigorating to say the least. For myself I know that after a long day when I pick up my beloved guitar, the last thing on my mind is working at playing. I want to simply enjoy playing. Which means I don't work on a new song or riff. I play the same standards I have been playing. I don't have to think, I don't have to work, I just turn it up and enjoy it.
But where does this get me? Sure I enjoy my playing, but I never get anywhere with it. See there is a point, a point where you forget about what is comfortable and you explore. It is right there at that point where the magic happens. This is where your playing progresses.
It is far to easy to slip into our own "comfort zones" whether it be with what we play, listen to, or any other aspect of life. But I think it is even easier to slip here with playing because for most of us it is a hobby. Realizing this has led me to decide that I need to forget about comfort. So today when I turned on my music, it was not the same music I listen all the time. That is a start. But tonight, when I pick up that guitar, it is time to step out of my comfort zone. I need to find a balance of comfort and exploration.
So join me this week and forget about comfort, lets explore a bit and see what kind of magic we end up creating.
Talk hard, play harder!
Pipes
2 comments:
Good for you Pipes! You have identified a reason for a lack of progress - that's AT LEAST half the battle. And you've said out loud what a lot of us try to ignore: I can complain about "sucking at guitar" all day long, but the only person who can improve my playing is me.
One other thing that might help you break out of your rut is to select a song for the Six String Bliss genre-bending album (but you'd have to pick a song and/ or genre that you're not already comfortable with!). That way you're working on a song or genre that isn't something you normally play, PLUS there's a deadline to help focus you.
Very tempting to just play the same old stuff. I did it for years. I need things to prompt me to play something different. The jam sessions I go to got me into trying Irish hornpipes and encouraged me to learn more songs so I have something new to play to people.
I still feel a good teacher could push me in new directions, but haven't found the right one yet.
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